
Science of Modern Horsemanship. 






A TRUE SYSTEM 



™f,:ii^m,®a T»AiHfiw©i 



f 







INCLUDING 



Trick Training, how to Raise, Feed, Drive, and nnake Valu- 
able Trotting or ^A/^ork Horses, a Treatise on Shoeing, 
Hints to Equestriennes, Jockey Tricks, Ac, <&c. 

TOGKTHEn WITH 

PRACTICAL RECIPES 

IN THE 

TREATMENT OF DISEASES OF HORSES. 

• 

FOUSTE EDITION— CAEEFULLY REVISED. 






PEORIA, ILL.: 

GEO. M. STANCH FIELD, PUBLISHER. 



m 



T¥f|f\ri^'C' We want an agent in your vicinity for the sale of 

JL^ XJ' JL JCdm this book, and would be pleased to have you act as 
such, the whole or a part of your time. These books have had an unpre- 
cedented sale the past five years, are ably noticed by the newspapers and 
sell readily to nearly every horse owner. As we employ no traveling 
agents, we can offer extraordinary inducements to local agents, and if you 
will take hold of the matter we will furnish you with books at the fol- 
lowing rates: 

100 Copies, $25 CO 

50 " 15.00 

25 " 8.00 

12 " 5.00 

The retail price of the book is 7 5 cents per copy, but many agents in- 
form us that they often get $1.00, but providing you only get 75 cents, 
you will readily see that you clear the handsome sum of $50. OO on every 
one hundred copies you sell. Trusting you will think favorably of this, 
(and go right to work among your friends), we hope to hear from you again. 

Address. Q. M. STANCHFIELB, Publisher, 

PEORIA. ILLINOIS. 



THE SCIENCE OF MODERN HORSEMANSHIP. 



A TRUE SYSTEM 



HORSE TRAINING, 



INCLUDING 



Trick Training-, how to Raise, Feed, Drive, and make 

Valuable Trotting or Work Horses, a Treatise 

on Shoeing, Hints to Equestriennes, 

Jockey Tricks, &c., &;c. 



TOGETHEK WITH THE 



EXPERIENCES OF A LIFETIME. 



Treatment of Diseases of Horses, 

Contained in Plain, Practical Recipes, 
BY AN 

EMINENT HORSE TAMER AND VETERINARY SURGEON. 
FOURTH EDITION-CAREFULLY RB^^ 




PUBLISHED BY G. M. STANCHFIELD 
1874. 






Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by 

GEO. M. STANCHFIELD, j^^ 4,... , 
in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



PREFACE. 



In presenting the fourth edition of this popular work for public favor, 
^we cannot forego the opportunity of acknowledging our obligations to the 
owners of horses for the very liberal and flattering testimonials of their 
approbation. Encouraged by this favorable reception, and the rapid sale 
of the first three editions, with the demand still increasing, we feel under 
obligations to issue this, the fourth edition, in oi*der to supply the 
demand. 

About twenty pages of new and valuable disclosures on the care and 
management of this noble animal, together with numerous rare recipes 
for the curing of diseases, have been added, making it now the most reli- 
able book extant. 

The subject of Horsemanship is so closely allied and identified with 
all man's interest, that everything that can be said to promote a reform 
in that particular cannot but commend itself to every one interested in 
that noble animal ; and who is there that is not? For the most common 
transactions of every-day life cannot be consummated without calling to 
his aid. This book is not presented to the public as an unexceptionable 
treatise on the Horse. It is merely a plain, practical exposition of the 
best system of Horsemanship that to-day is extant ; one that has met with 
the approbation and commendation of the best horsemen of the age, and 
one that has received a patronage vouchsafed to no other system. It is 
merely to gratify a desire expressed by hundreds who have young colts 
and contrary horses, and have no easy method of subjugating them; and 
yet every move with the horse is so plain and intelligible that any one 
can take hold of and manage the wildest colt or the most vicious horse. 
While we beg frona the scrutinizing public a charitable criticism for any 
shortcoming that may be discovered, we feel great confidence that the 
work will meet with a hearty approval from horsemen generally, and 
prove a valuable auxiliary in bringing about that much-needed reform in 
the proper management and control of the most noble of the brute creation. 

THE PUBLISHER. 




i 



THE HORSE. 



His Origin, History, and Habits. 

/JvHE reduction of the horse to a domesticated state is the 
-L greatest acquisition from the animal world ever made 
by the art and industry of man. The history of this noble 
quadruped, as regards his origin, or natural locality, and the 
period of his first subjugation, is involved in obscurity. We 
learn from the Sacred Writings that he is of Eastern origin ; 
and they render the inference very probable, that the Egyp- 
tians were the first who reduced him to servitude. 

The earliest notice of the horse occurs six hundred and 
fifty years after the Deluge, when the Egyptians " brought 
their cattle to Joseph, who gave them bread in exchange 
for horses and for their flocks," &c. Very soon after, we read, 
the venerable patriarch, Jacob, when dying in Egypt, address- 
ing his sons, said : " Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an 
adder in the path, that biteth the horse's heels, so that his 
rider shall fall backward ;" and it is remarkable that this early 
allusion to the horse refers to him as being ridden, and not as 
drawing a chariot. When the body of Jacob was removed by 
his son Joseph from Egypt to Canaan, for burial, we are told 
that, " there went up with him both chariots and horsemen." 
It appears, then, from this notice, as well as from the employ- 
ment of numerous chariots by Pharoah in pursuit of the Isra- 
elites, and from the testimony of the earliest profane writers, 
that the Egyptians first reduced the horse to obedience, it is to 
their country, or, at least to those parts of Africa which were 
in close connection with it, that we may reasonably look for 
his primitive habitat. The long-admitted superiority of the 
horses of Arabia is no evidence that they were originally 
placed in that arid country ; and there is much reason to con- 



6 HISTOR Y OF THE HORSE. 

elude that it was not until a comparatively late period that the 
Arabs used horses. At the time when Solomon was receiving 
various treasures from Arabia, it was from Egypt only that he 
obtained his immense number of horses. Herodotus expressly 
states that Xerxes obtained a portion of his cavalry from Ethi- 
opia, and that he was joined by a body of native Indians, 
some on horseback and otliers in war-chariots. 

The primitive habits, contour, and color of the horse, in a 
purely natural condition, cannot be said to be known with 
certainty ; for it is highly probable that he has long ceased to 
exist in such a state. As the wild horses which are now found 
in various parts of the world appear to have sprung from a do- 
mesticated stock, they afford no clue to the elucidation of the 
points in question. The numerous herds of wild horses ex- 
isting on the plains of Tartary do not appear to have been 
indigenous to that country, and the still greater numbers 
w^hich inhabit South America are very clearly traced to the 
horses which the Spaniards introduced into that part of our 
continent from Europe ; and old writers tell us that, when the 
American Indians first saw a man on horseback, they thought 
the man and the horse to be one and the same individual. 

Horses differ in intelligence, disposition, and temper. 
Those who profess to know anything about them pay much 
attention to the size, position, and motion of the ears. Horses 
with rather small than large ears, placed not too far apart, 
erect and quick in motion, indicate both breeding and spirit ; 
and if a horse is in the frequent habit of carrying one ear for- 
ward and the other backward, especially if he does so on a 
journey, he will generally possess both spirit and endurance. 
The stretching of the ears in contrary directions shows that 
he is attentive to everything that is passing around him ; and 
while he is doing this, he cannot be much fatigued, nor likely 
soon to become so. 

The temper is more surely indicated by a motion of the ear 
than of the eye ; and an experienced observer of horses can tell 
by the motion of their ears all that they think and mean. 
When the horse lays his ears flat back upon his neck, and 
keeps them so, he is most assuredly meditating mischief, and 
the bystander should beware of his heels or his teeth. In 
play, the ears will likewise be laid back, but not so decidedly, 



HISTOR Y OF THE HORSE. 



nor so long; a quick change in their position, togetlier with 
the expression of the eye at the time, will distinguish between 
playfulness and vice. The hearing of the horse is remarkably 
acute ; a thousand vibrations of the air, too slight to make any 
impression on the human ear, are readily perceived by him. 

The eye of the horse is also a pretty accurate index of his 
temper ; and experience has shown that, if much of the white 
of the eye is seen, he is a dangerous one, ever slyly watching 
for opportunities to do mischief; and the frequent backward 
direction of the eye, when the white is most perceptible, is 
only to give sure effect to the blow which he is about to aim. 
But, though bold and intrepid, he knows how to govern and 
how to check the natural vivacity and fire of his temper. He 
not only yields to the hand, but seems to consult the inclina- 
tion of his rider. Uniformly obedient to the impressions he 
receives, he flies or stops, and regulates his motions entirely, 
by his master's will. In a measure, he renounces his very ex- 
istence to the pleasures of man. He delivers up his whole 
powers ; he reserves nothing, and often dies rather than dis- 
obey. 

These are features in the character of the horse, the natural 
qualities of which have been perfected by art, and trained with 
care to the service of man. His education commences with 
the loss of liberty, and is completed by restraint. 




HOW TO TRAIN. 



Nature of the Horse. 

^TVHE HOKSE has no reasoning faculties beyond the lim- 
J- its of his experience. Therefore we can reason with him 
by acts alone. Literally, with the horse, acts speak louder 
than words, and hence the absolute importance of commenc- 
ing every move with the horse right, for by our acts he learns. 
Secondly, early impressions are strong, both in the human 
family and with the horse, and seldom, if ever, are entirely 
erased from memory's tablet. 

Who is there in the human family that does not well 
remember the first impressions of his boyhood days? and as 
we journey on through life, what a controlling intluence they 
exert over us. Just so with the horse. Hence the great im- 
portance of having his first impressions of such, a nature as to 
convince him not only of man's superiority, but to satisfy him 
that man is his best friend. Obtain, by a systematic course of 
handling, not only supreme power over him, but learn him also 
to repose trust and confidence in you, and then never betray it. 
No animal has memory equal to that of the horse, and none 
will reciprocate a kindness or resent an injury sooner. We 
hold that man, being, on account of his intellectual resources, 
superior to all other animals, is, and has a right to be, at the 
head of all animal creation, for he can adopt means to over- 
come the strength of the horse, or even use iragainst himself. 

Necessity of Honesty and Kindness. 

You must treat the horse kindly ; you must obtain his con- 
fidence, and then never abuse it; deal honestly with him; 
never lie to him. He judges you by your acts. Never ask him 



10 HO W TO TBAIN. 



to do anything without you are in a position to compel obedi- 
ence (if he has a correct idea of what you want), and then 
when the obedience is rendered, reward him for it. Be prompt, 
but never deceive him. 

Familiarizing to Objects of Fear. 

As we are tauglit, there is no effect without a cause, and as 
the horse becomes fearless and confident, so far as he under- 
stands there is no cause for fear, we should remove the cause of 
mischief as much as possible by complying with those laws of 
his nature by which he examines an object, or determines upon 
its innocence or harm. Therefore let him examine and smell 
of such things as are likely to frighten him, such as a log by 
the roadside, an umbrella, buffalo robe or other frightful object. 
His nose is his fingers. 

Use Intelligent Means. 

The horse should be treated with kindness and considera- 
tion ; you have a right to curb and restrain his spirit, but not 
to subdue it ; he has no more natural spirit than it is proper he 
should have, and -the great difficulty with all theories of horse- 
manship that have been promulgated to the world is, that they 
have been founded upon one idea of subjugation alone. Subju- 
gation is not teaching ; you have a right to restrain, to make 
him conform to your will. But you must also teach him what 
you want him to do. To hitch up the wild colt and say "whoa*"' 
to him, without having first taught him the word *' whoa," is 
unreasonable in the extreme. 'Tis true, we cannot handle the 
w^ild colt that is actuated by fear, as we can the old horse that 
is actuated by vengeance; with the one we are all mildness, 
whereas we take hold of the other in a manner that satisfies 
him that there is to be no partnership arrangement about it, 
but we are to have it our way all the time. 

To Halter a Wild Colt. 

Provide yourself with a pole, a piece of edging, a rake- 
handle or anything else of the kind ; cut a notch in one end, 
and about seven inches from this end raise a few chips from 
the opposite end of the stick. Take a common rope halter, 
draw out the stale through the loop so that that portion will 



HO W TO TRAIN. 11 



drop down eighteen or twenty inches ; now hang the head- 
piece on the notches on the end of the stick, holding the end 
In your hand with the stick ; the halter now hangs upon the 
stick, so spread that you can put it over the colt's ears without 
touching any part of his head. You now approach the colt, 
swinging the halter, which immediately attracts his attention, 
and he will reach out his nose to smell it. While he is smell- 
ing it you cautiously raise it over his head until back of his 
ears ; then turn the stick half round and the halter will drop 
upon his head ; now take the end of the stick and shove up 
the loop so as to draw up the slack, and your colt is haltered ; 
and he is not frightened, and you are not hurt. 

To Learn the Colt to Lead. 

Step back on a line with his hips, and say, "Come here, sir," 
and give him a smart, sharp pull, which will swing him round 
to you ; then step to the opposite side and give him the same 
side pull, and say, "Come here, sir." If he should not pull 
easily enough, as soon a^you can soothe him enough to ap- 
proach him, fasten up one fore foot with a short strap ; and 
then you can pull him the more readily either side. Never 
pull him straight ahead, until after you have learned him to 
come promptly either side, for sideways you can pull him, and 
straight ahead you cannot. Do not let him know his strength, 
for he has no reasoning powers to say, " You can pull me side- 
ways, but straight ahead you cannot." Should he sulk after a 
few trials, and refuse to come either way, take a short hold of 
the halter with the left hand, while with the right grasp the 
tail firmly, and whirl him round until he acts dizzy; then 
whirl him the other way. This convinces him you can handle 
him just as you please. The moment he follows you, pat him 
for it. 

To Handle the Colt's Feet. ' 

Commence gently to pick up his feet, and if he resists you, 
treat as follows : If a fore foot, stand by the side of your colt 
and throw over his back a light strap, and tie it around his leg 
loosely, so that it will slip down to his fetlock joint ; then take 
up his foot with the strap, and keep close to his side until after 
he is through struggling ; then commence to soothe the foot 



12 HO W TO TRAIN. 



with your hands, and pound upon it a very little. In a short 
time he will suffer you to handle it as you please. If a hind 
foot, take the fore foot in your left hand while with your right 
you pass the end of the strap around the hind leg below the 
fetlock. Now pull upon the strap, which will cause the foot to 
be drawn forward. This he will resist by kicking, but he soon 
finds resistance useless, and will give you his foot ; then take 
it into your hands and soothe as described for the forefoot. If 
a more thorough treatment is found necessary, use him accord- 
ing to directions laid down elsewhere for "the horse bad to- 
shoe." 

To Ride the Wild Colt. 

Stand upon the near side of your colt and throw over his 
back a piece of web or strap, and fasten to his right fore foot 
below the fetlock joint ; then take up his foot and hold it for a 
few minutes, until he ceases struggling ; then quietly let him 
have it, and lead him along a few steps and say "whoa," and 
at the same time you say "whoa," (ti'aw up the strap, which 
makes him stop, for it puts him on three legs. After you have 
led him a little ways in this way, stand by his side and take 
up his foot, wind your hand in the strap, and commence to 
jump up and down at his side a few times, keeping hold of the 
foot; then carefully jump on him with your breast, and slide 
back again ; then, while holding up the foot, jump quietly on 
his back. Now let down his foot, and if he shows the least 
disposition to stir, take up his foot and drop it and take it again. 
The idea is that he cannot think of two things at once, and the 
moment he thinks of throwing you off (which you detect by 
the drawing of the muscles of his back), you take his foot and 
change his attention to that, and his back is all right. This 
plan will ride any colt or horse. 

Yo Teach a Colt to Follow under the Whip. 

Buckle around your colt an ordinary surcingle rather loose- 
ly ; take a piece of web or a long strap, about fifteen or even 
twenty feet in length. Take the strap and pass it through the 
surcingle and fasten it to the colt's left fore foot; now take 
hold of the strap about six feet from where it passes through 
the surcingle, and, placing your whip over the colt's back. 



HOW TO TRAIN. 13 



commence to tap him on the right side of the head very gently. 
If he turns his head toward you, and looks or makes a step 
toward you, stop and pat him ; if he attempts to leave you, 
take his foot and let him go on three legs, running around you ; 
the moment he stops, step up to him again, place your whip 
over his back and repeat, and in a very few moments he will 
turn towards you, the moment you place your whip on the op- 
posite side. Then you can take off the strap, and he will fol- 
low you readily, but be careful and not whip when he is turn- 
ing toward you. Keep him in difficulty with the whip when- 
ever he turns his head from you ; but the moment he turns 
toward you reward him, and he will soon learn there is no 
peace except by you ; and then practice will soon make him 
perfect. The same plan breaks the wild steer to " haw " and 
"gee" under the whii). 

The War Bridle. 

This is one of the most powerful means of control in the 
management of the horse that is known. The War Bridle is 
simply a cord of about the size of a common bed-cord or 
a clothes-line. It should be of cotton, and made of fine yarn, 
or what is known as fine thread cotton cord, about three- 
eighths of an inch in diameter, used extensively for clothes- 
lines. 

Take a cord of the above description — in length about fif- 
teen feet; tie one end into a hard knot, just as you would to 
prevent its raveling ; now tie another knot about ten inches, 
or a little more, from the one on the end, but before you draw 
it tight put through the knot on the end. You now have a 
loop that will not slip. This loop should be just large enough 
to slip over the under jaw of the horse you wish to train. Put 
the loop over the lower jaw, then, while standing on the near 
side, take the cord in the left hand and bring it over the neck 
by passing the left hand under the neck to the opposite side, 
toward the mane ; now bring the right hand over the neck, 
and take the cord from the left and pass back to the loop and 
put through from the top side, until the part over the neck is 
drawn down like a check rein, now take hold of the end of 
this rein and you will find you have a means of power in it 
that makes the strongest horse almost a plaything in your 



14 HO W TO TRAIN. 

hands. You must use the bridle with judgment, for in the 
proper use of it consists its great value. In handling the colt 
with it you must use the utmost mildness, whereas many who 
have witnessed my operations, and then commenced subse- 
quently to use it, have made a little resistance on the part of 
the colt an excuse to use it in the most severe manher, until the 
eolt becomes so desperate with pain as to be entirely reckless 
and regardless of the utmost efforts ; but in the management 
of the old horse you can take hold of him as if you were deter- 
mined that any resistance on his part would be entirely useless. 
Step to one side of the colt and say, "Come here, sir," pulling 
a very little on the bridle, just enough to bring his head toward 
you, and repeat for a few times; each time that he comes 
toward you at the word, reward him with a pat on the neck ; 
and if he doesn't stir, pull him with the bridle. Any colt or 
horse can be made to follow you in a very few minutes with this 
bridle. 

To Teach the Colt to Back. 

Put on the War Bridle, stand directly in front of your horse, 
having hold of the cord — about twenty inches from the head 
— with your left hand, resting the right on the cord or bridle 
about four or five inches from the head. You will say, " Back, 
sir," and at the same time press down and back with your right 
hand steadily on the cord until, by way of relieving himself, 
he will step back one step ; let up on the cord and pat him. 
That teaches him what you want. Then repeat for a few times, 
and after you have given him the idea and the motion, you 
can then press him back sharply with the cord, and in a few 
minutes more, at the word. This will never fail to teach the 
colt or bad horse to back. 

Bitting the Colt. 

All you can possibly accomplish with the old-fashioned bit- 
ting bridle I can accomplish with my bridle in forty minutes, 
and that is to teach the horse to hold down his head, hold up 
his head, and to the right and to the left, at the touch of the 
rein. If nature has not designed the horse to have a high, 
stylish head and carriage, no art of man can alter it, and the 
old-fashioned practice of straining up the neck in an unnatural 



HO W TO TBAIN. 15 

position, and leaving it there for liours, nine times out of ten 
results in a heavy-headed lugger on the bits. Care should be 
taken when first bitting the colt to have the tongue under the 
bit, for if he gets in the habit of carrying it over he will hang 
his tongue out of his mouth. 

How to Make a Bitting Bridle. 

Take your cord, previously used, and fix a loop upon the 
other end, just like the one used to go over the jaw, only big 
enough to go over his neck, and fit down rather tight where the 
collar is worn ; now bring your cord forward, and put it through 
the loop around the neck ; now pull upon this cord and the 
head will be drawn back to the breast. You are now prepared 
to bit ; simply pull upon the cord a little, and as soon as he 
curbs his head well, relieve him — that teaches him it is there 
you want it. When you want to raise his head, lift quickly on 
the cord, and you elevate his head finely. You should not bit 
over five minutes at a time, and then put it away, and after a 
little resume it, and in forty minutes' time, dividing each bit- 
ting into five minutes each, you can bit your colt well. 

Training to Harness. 

You should be very careful the first time you undertake to 
harness your colt, to see that the harness fits perfectly well, and 
that it is perfectly safe. Many accidents have been the result 
of such carelessness. Then, with the aid of the bridle to re- 
prove him, if he resists the putting of the harness on him, 
harness him, and after you have moved him about a little, at- 
tach to him, before you undertake to hitch him to the sulky, 
what I shall call a foot strap, which is simply a piece of web- 
bing, or a piece of strap or rope long enough to be fastened to 
one of his forward feet, and then run over the belly-band of 
the harness, and then outside of the tugs back to the buggy or 
sulky, which you hold in your hand as a life insurance or third 
rein. If he attempts to run away, pull upon the strap, which 
throws him upon three feet instantly, and he has to stop. If 
he attempts to run back, the same remedy stops him. If he 
attempts to kick you, attract his attention forward instantly, 
and at the same time make it impossible for him to kick. The 
moment you notice any disposition to kick, take his foot, which 



16 JIOW TO TEA IN. 

disconcerts him, attracts his attention away from his hind 
parts, while it is impossible for him to kick ; but do not take 
his foot and hold it, but keep snatching and letting him have 
it, and you will soon break him up of the habit. This is one 
of the most powerful means of control ever yet devised, because 
you beat him while right in the act. 

Objects of Fear. 

Never whip your horse for becoming frightened at any 
object by the roadside ; for if he sees a stump, a log, or a heap 
of tan bark in the road, and while he is eyeing it carefully, and 
about to pass it, you strike him with the whip, it is the log or 
the stump, or the tan bark that is hurting him, in his way of 
reasoning, and the next time he will act more frightened. 
Give him time to examine and smell of all these objects, and 
use the war bridle to assist you in bringing him carefully to 
these objects of fear. Bring all objects, if possible to his nose, 
and let him smell of them, and then you can commence to 
gentle him with them. 

Driving. 

In teaching a young horse to drive well, do not be in a hurry 
to see how fast he can trot. Keep each pace clear and distinct 
from each other ; that is, in walking, make him walk, and do 
not allow him to trot ; while trotting, be equally careful that 
he keeps steadily at his pace, and do not allow him to slack into 
a walk. The reins, while driving, should be kept snug ; and 
when pushed to the top of his speed, keep him well in iiaud, 
that he may learn to bear well upon the bit, so that when going 
at a high rate of speed he can be held at liis pace ; but do not 
allow him to pull too hard, for that is not only unpleasant, but 
makes it often difficult to manage him. 

To Stand when getting into a Carriage. 

Take your horse on the barn floor and throw a strap over 
his back and fasten it to the right fore foot; lead him along, 
and say "whoa," at the same time pull down on -the strap, 
which throws him on three feet and makes him stop suddenly. 
This is the best way known to teach "whoa" — though you 
can put on the war bridle and say "whoa," and give him a 
sharp jerk ; that will stop him about as soon as the strap to the 



HO W TO TRAIN. 17 



foot. Then put him in a harness with the foot strap, as direct- 
ed under the head of " Training to Harness," and drive him 
up to the door. The moment he undertakes to move, take his 
foot and say "whoa." Get into your carriage and get out again; 
rattle the thills; make all the noise in getting in and out you 
can; give him to understand, by snatching his foot each time 
he moves, that he must stand until you tell him to go; and 
after a few times you will have a horse that will stand perfectly 
still while the whole family enters the carriage. 

Balky Horses. 

When the horse balks in the harness, it is not from any un- 
willingness to perform his duty, but from some confusion or 
excitement arising from mismanagement. He is willing and 
anxious to go, but too eager or high-spirited to make the steady' 
push against the collar necessary to move the load. The usual 
plan is to commence to curse and lash. A volume might be 
written on the importance of keeping cool on all such oc- 
casions. Frequently, simply going to their heads and moving 
them gently against their collars to the right and left evenly, 
giving them time to get cool, and thej^ will start of their own 
accord. Sometimes taking up one fore foot in your hand, and 
giving the horse a sharp press against the shoulder, to one side, 
will cause him to step, and start him. But if the habit is 
tirmly tixed you will have to resort to the following means, 
which will take a few lessons, and thereby you will break up 
the habit. 

Take your balky horse in the barn, or on a piece of green- 
sward; take him by the head and tail, and whirl him around 
until he is quite dizzy ; and if you become dizzy before he does, 
let him whirl himself as follows : Tie the hair of the tail into 
a hard knot; then take the halter strap in your left hand, hold- 
ing the tail in your right, pass the halter strap through the 
hair, above the knot, and draw up as short as the horse will 
bear without falling down, tying it quickly. This will bring 
the horse in the form of a half-circle — his head fast to his tail 
by the halter strap. Your object is to break up his confidence 
in himself; and nothing on earth — no process you can subject 
him to, will do it half so soon as this. Should he not run 
round very freely, touch him behind with the whip, which 



18 HOW TO TRAIN. 



will cause him to move sharply. Simply keep him moving 
until he falls down by becoming dizzy, which he will do inside 
of a minute and a-half. Let liim lie a few minutes ; tlien tie 
him in the opposite direction, and continue until he falls or is 
unable to move. Then put on your war bridle and give a few 
sharp jerks to the right and left, and show him that you can 
handle him by the head as well as by the tail ; and train him 
until lie will spring to the right and left, and straight forward, 
when you ask him to, and then you are in a shape to put him in 
harness. If he refuses to draw, step in front of him wy:li the 
bridle on, and fetch him either way first, and then straight 
ahead ; and in a short time you will work it out of him. If at 
any time your horse should become warm, put him away and 
let him cool. You will gain time by it, for when sulky and 
heated he is in no shape to learn. 

Kicking in Harness. 

Kicking in harness is regarded as one of the most dangerous 
habits that the horse has. How often do we hear the remark 
made by dealers, " I care not what he will do if he will not 
kick." It is generally the result in the first instance of gross 
carelessness and bad management. The habit in tlie colt, 
frequently, is formed by suffering the straps to dangle about 
his flanks and legs, which frightens him and makes him kick, 
as a matter of self-defense. In old horses the habit usually is 
caused by some mishap while in harness, such as hitching 
him too near, so that his heels touches the cross-bar, or by a 
bolt of the thills coming out and letting the wagon on his heels. 

This fear must be broken up by habituating the horse to 
iTeing touclied, and made to bear the various causes of mischief 
without the ability to resist ; when he, becoming convinced 
that there is no harm to be appreliended from them, will give 
up the habit. Your main remedy is tlie foot strap. Put on 
tlie foot strap, and as the horse moves off, say gently " whoa," 
and instantly pull upon the strap, which throws him upon 
three legs; and so continue until he will stop instantly when 
"whoa" is called. Then tempt the horse to kick, and the 
next instant take his foot. Put the strap between his hind 
legs and dangle it all around him ; use behind him any object 
that he is afraid of, and for the first few times in harness have 
the foot strap on, as the third rein. 



HOW TO TRAIN. 19 



Kicking in the Stall. 

Many horses will kick in the stable as soon as the lights 
are put out and men gone ; they merely kick at the standings 
and stall posts, with what intention we never could find out ; 
idleness, we conclude, first induced them to do it, and habit 
induces them to keep it up. It is a bad trick, for it not only 
keeps them from their rest, but disturbs other horses. A small 
chain, ten or fourteen inches long, buckled with a small strap 
in the hollow of the pastern, usually stops them. If it does 
not, put a bridle on the horse, and then tie a rope to each side 
of the bit, run them through the surcingle, then fasten to 
each foot; whenever the horse attempts to kick he jerks his 
mouth violently, and soon learns to stand quiet. This rarely 
fails, but the arrangement should not be left on at night for 
fear of accidents. If neither will do, use the surcingle, with 
a three-inch ring slipped upon it, and hanging beneath the 
animal. Then take a short strap with a ring attached, and 
buckle around the forward foot below the fetlock. To the ring 
in the short strap attach a strong cord, which bring up and 
pass through the ring in the surcingle ; then rieturn to the foot 
and run through the ring in the short strap ; then pass over 
the belly band and tie to the hind leg below the fetlock. With 
this attachment on each side, the moment a horse kicks he 
pulls his forward feet from under and trips himself upon his 
knees, which he will be very careful not to do but a few times. 

To Prevent Getting Cast in Stall. 

Have a strap hanging from over head in about the centre of 
the stall, with a rein snap at the end of it. Have a small iron 
ring fastened on the halter on the top of the head. Hitch the 
horse in the stall with the halter as usual, and snap the hang- 
ing strap into the ring. It prevents his rolling over, conse- 
quently he cannot get cast. 

For Pawing. 

Attach a strap to his fetlock, with a bit of trace chain about 
fifteen inches long hanging from it. When he paws he whips 
his other shin with the chain. 

Halter-Pulling. 

Halter-pulling is one of the worst faults that a horse can 
have, as you cannot trust him anywhere, either in or out of 



20 HO W TO TBAIN. 



the stable, it is, in most cases, the fault of the owner of the 
horse, that he contracts this bad habit, either by tying at first 
with insecure halters, or to weak and insecure hitching posts 
or mangers. Put on the war bridle and train the horse about 
until he will come to you readily when you pull him a little 
sideways. Simply repeat this, gradually a little more on a line 
with his body at each repetition, until he will yield as readily 
to being pulled forward as sideways. Now take him to the 
post and run the bridle through the ring, but do not tie it. 
Keep hold of the bridle and frighten him back ; as he starts to 
run back, give him a quick, sharp pull, and then let go. Do 
not hang on, even if he draws the bridle out of the ring. 
Fetch him up again, and repeat; and at the third or fourth 
trial 3'ou will not be able to make him pull. Yet do not con- 
sider him broken, by any means ; but repeat whenever he has 
the habit of pulling — at the post in the street, in the stall, or 
wherever it may be. Another plan is: Tiie a strap or piece of 
rope round the body, where the harness saddle rests ; then lead 
the horse to his manger or to a post, run the halter strap 
through the ring or hole, and pass back between the fore legs, 
over the strap or rope tied around the body, and tie to the hind 
leg, below the fetlock ; then step forward to his head and make 
him pull. Of course he will go back, with a rush ; but the 
moment he attempts going back, the halter strap pulls directly 
upon the hind leg, which frightens him behind, and he steps 
forward to get out of difficulty. Three or four lessons will 
usually break up the habit ; but do not be afraid of making 
him pull. Frighten him back, by all means possible. The 
more you can make him pull upon himself, at first, the quicker 
he will give it up. 

The Horse Bad to Shoe. 

Usually, a horse bad to shoe can be shod by attaching to his 
hind foot a short strap, and taking it in the right hand while 
he has the war bridle on, and with the left pulling his foot for- 
ward by the strap, at which he kicks, when 3'ou must reprove 
him with the war bridle, keeping his foot up with the strap 
until he submits without resistance. But if your subject is 
very bad, take a piece of webbing, a strap, or a rope about 
twelve feet long, and step before the horse and tie one end of 



HO W TO TRAIN. 21 



it iu a loop around the neck, where the collar rests ; then pass 
the other end back between the fore legs, around the near hind 
leg, below the fetlock, bring forward outside of the left fore 
leg, and put through the loop around the neck ; then step a 
little in front of the horse, take hold of this strap and pull back 
upon it, until the foot is brougiit forward a very little, so that 
when he undertakes to step he can just reach the floor; in a 
few minutes more take up his foot as far forward as ix)ssible, 
when you can hold it very easily. He will struggle to free the 
foot by kicking, but you must let him struggle; and if he 
undertakes to run backward, whirl him round by his head 
until he will yield his foot. As soon as he yields a little, handle 
the foot gently, until he will suiter you to handle while back 
in its natural position. Be sure and rub the leg very carefully 
when you put it down, and use a soft strap or piece of webbing, 
for fear you may chafe the foot. 

Running Away. 

Put on the foot strap, and when he attempts to run, take up 
his foot, making him run and tripping him every time he will 
not stop instantly at the sound of " whoa." Should he be ex- 
tremely wilful, he may run on three legs. If you mistrust so, 
attach another strap to the opposite foot. Then make him run, 
and if he will not stop for the taking up of one foot, take up 
the second, which will destroy his confidence in short order. 
This will effectually correct any runaway horse or team. 

General Remarks. 

Mankind are too apt to depend upon their strength to beat 
the horse, without making any use of their reasoning powers 
to outTgeneral him ; and in many instances such an exercise of 
tyranny over the horse only engenders a rebellious spirit on 
the part of the animal. Therefore lay aside strength and use 
reason ; be moderate, be temperate. No man can become a 
good horseman, and not have first learned to control himself 
before he attempts to control the animal. Be firm, be perse- 
vering, be honest — never lie to your horse. Endeavor to have 
him understand what you want, and do not confuse him by 
attaching different meanings to the same word. It is quite 
common to say " Whoa ! " when you mean for the horse to go 



22 HOW TO TBAIN. 

slower; and to let him know of your presence by saying 
•' Whoa ! " when he has not stirred a foot ; and then when you 
want your horse to stop — when your life may depend upon 
having a good *'whoa" on him — you find you have not got 
it. You have played it entirely out of him. Never say 
** Whoa ! " unless you mean to stop right there. Speak always 
in a natural tone of voice, under all circumstances. 

Have your horse understand by examination and experience 
that the things liable to frighten are harmless ; and be sure not 
to whip him for being frightened. Always let your horse face 
the object of fear; and remember that the slower you move 
him when frightened the more power you have over him. 
There are times when letting a horse trot is almost as bad as 
letting him run away. 

Fear is something a horseman should never exhibit in his 
countenance or voice, as the horse is a close observer, and soon 
learns to take advantage of such indications, to become care- 
less of control, if not, indeed, aggressive. Let your lessons be 
thorough, but not very long. Be gentle and patient with the 
colt, but make the wilful, stubborn horse feel the full extent of 
your power until he submits; though if he should become 
much heated and excited, it is prudent to stop, and repeat the 
lessons at some future time ; but repeat until there is thorough 
and unconditional submission. Let your treatment be char- 
acterized by gentleness afterward. 




TRICK TRAINING, 



COs many of our readers may wish to know how to teach 
^^Ti. their horses tricks, we will explain how it may be done. 
Teaching a young horse a few tricks, serves greatly to keep up 
an interest in him, and makes liim appear intelligent, fearless 
and affectionate. In teaching your horse to perform tricks, it 
is best to give him one or two lessons of half or three-quarters 
of an hour each, daily. 

To Come at Crack of Whip or Word of Command. 

Put on the war bridle, stand off a few feet from his liead, 
holding the end of the bridle in the left hand and the whip in 
the right. 

Crack the whip a little, and say, "Come here, sir ! " He does 
not know what this means, but you show him by pulling on 
the bridle a little, which he will obey by moving toward you a 
few steps. This movement you thank him for by stepping for- 
ward and giving him a little apple or a few kernels of corn, and 
caressing him gently ; then repeat in the same way, regarding 
him as before, and so continue until he will walk up to you 
readily when you crack the whip or say, "Come here, sir! " 
which he will soon learn to do. Each time he comes to you 
talk to him kindly, and do not fail to give him his little reward 
of corn or apple, oats, or something of the kind which he likes. 
You can now take off" his halter and turn him loose, and repeat 
until he fully comprehends that the way to avoid the whip is 
to come to you, which, with the encouragement of rewarding, 
will soon inspire his fullest confidence, and he will come to you 
and follow like a dog. 

Be very cautious about the use of the whip, or harsh lan- 
guage, remembering that perfect, cheerful obedience is your 
object, and that can be secured only by great patience and gen- 
tleness. 



24 TRICK TRAININO. 

To Make a Bow. 

Take a pin in your right hand, between the thumb and fore- 
finger, and stand up before, but a little to the left of j-our 
horse. Then prick him on the breast very lightly, as if a fly 
biting, which to relieve he will bring down his head, and this 
you will accept as yes, and for which you will reward him by 
caressing and feeding, as before. Then repeat, and so continue 
until he will bring his head down the moment he sees the least 
motion of your hand towards his breast, or substitute some 
signal which he will understand readily. 

To Say No. 

tStand by your horse near the shoulder, holding the same 
pin in your hand, with which you prick him lightly on the 
withers, and to drive away, he will shake his head. You 
then caress as before, and repeat, until he will shake his 
head at' the least indication of touching him with a pin. A 
horse can be trained so nicely in this way in a short time, as to 
cause him to shake his head or bow, by merely turning the 
hand a little, or moving it slightly towards him. 

To Lie Down. 

To teach a horse how to do this trick quickly, you must lay 
him down two or three times, or as often as you will find it 
necessary to make him understand your object. If an old 
horse, strap the near foreleg to the arm ; then take the little 
strap previously used to temper the colt with, place it over the 
back and strap around the off fore foot, below the fetlock ; then 
take the bridle rein firmly in the left hand, about eighteen 
inches from the head, and pull it a little toward you. The 
moment he steps, pull upon the strap over the body, which 
will bring the horse on his knees. Hold him quietly, at the 
same time talking to him gently. When he springs, pull 
sharply with the left hand, and at the same instant pull down 
with the right, which will swing him around you, and prevent 
his rising high enough to injure his knees by the momentum 
of the body in coming down. By being gentle, the horse will 
usually lie down in a short time When down, treat your 
horse with the greatest attention and kindness. After holding 
him down ten or fifteen minutes, permit him to get up. Repeat 



TRICK TRAINING. 25 

this lesson until he -will come down readily. Then use only 
the strap over the back, having it on the near foot, and bring 
him on his knees gently, when he will soon lie down. When 
he will come on his knees readily by taking up the foot in this 
way, take up the foot with the hand, asking him to lie down. 
He will soon come down. When he will come down on his 
knees readily by taking \\\> the foot with the hand, simply 
stoop as if intending to take it up, saying, " Lie down, sir! " 
Then make him come down by a motion of the hand; and 
finally, by simply telling him to lie down. If a colt, use but 
the single strap over the body at first, which will soon cause 
him to come on his knees. In teaching a horse to lie down, 
be gentle, caress and reward him for lying down, and your 
horse, comprehending what you want, and finding himself 
paid for compliance, will soon be as anxious to get down for 
the reward as you are to have him. 

To Sit Up. 

When your horse will lie down readily, you can then easily 
teach him to sit up, like a dog. If young, and not very heavy 
or strong, you can easily prevent his getting up without tying 
him down. First cause him to lie down, having on him a 
common bridle, with the reins over the neck ; then step behind 
him and place the right foot firmly on the tail, the reins in 
your hands. Then say, "Get up, sir!" The horse, rising 
from a recumbent position, first turns on his belly, throws out 
his forward feet and raises himself on them, springs forward 
and rises on his hind feet. Now, standing upon his tail firmly, 
and pulling back upon the reins when he attempts to spring 
forward and up, will prevent his doing so, and you hold him 
sitting up. Hold him firmly a few seconds, talk to him kindly, 
before permitting him to rise on his feet. Repeat a few times, 
when, instead of springing up he will sit upon his haunches a 
short time, which you are to accept as complying with your 
wishes. Always say, " Sit up, sir ! " every time, and hold him 
in this position as long as he will bear, by fondling and feeding 
him with something he likes from the hand, and your horse 
will soon learn to sit up for you as long as you wish. 

But if your horse is heavy and strong, it will be necessary 
to resort to other means to hold him down at first. It can be 



26 TRICK TRAINING. 

done by putting on his neck a common collar, and causing him 
to lie down. Then fasten a piece of rope, or a rein, to each 
hind foot, and bring it forward through the collar and draw up 
close, which will bring the hind feet well forward. Then step 
behind, as in the other case, and when he attempts to rise on 
his hind feet, he finds it impossible to do so, because you hold 
them firmly with these straps. Repeat two or three times, 
when it will not be necessary to resort to such force. 

To Kiss You. 

Teach him first to take an apple out of your hand. Then 
gradually raise the hand nearer your mouth, at each repetition, 
until you require him to take it from your mouth — you hold- 
ing it there with your hand — telling him at the same time to 
kiss you. He will soon learn to reach his nose up to your 
mouth — first to get his apple, but finally because commanded 
to do so. Simply repeat until he understands the trick thor- 
oughly. 

To Shake Hands. 

Tie a short strap, or a piece of cord, to the forward foot, below 
the fetlock. Stand directly before the horse, holding the end 
of this strap or cord in your hand ; then say, " Shake hands, 
sir!" and immediately after commanding him to do so, pull 
upon the strap, which will bring his foot forward, and which 
you are to accept as shaking hands, thanking him for it by car- 
essing and feeding ; and so repeat, until, when the demand is 
made, he will bring the foot forward in anticipation of having 
it pulled. This is a very easy trick to teach a horse. 

By a little practice a horse may be easily trained to approach, 
make a bow, shake hands, and follow like a dog, lie down, sit 
up, &c., which makes him appear both polite and intelligent. 

Never lose courage, or confidence in your ability, because 
you may not bring about good results easily. To accomplish 
anything of importance, remember, requires no ordinary reso- 
lution and perseverance. There would be no credit or import- 
ance attached to mastering and managing bad horses, if not 
difficult, and apparently dangerous. No duty requires more 
firmness of purpose in the control of the passions, or more 
fidelity to the principles of kindness and truth, than that of 
horsemanship. 



TBICK TRAINING. 



27 



If you would be a really successful horseman, you must 
never seem to forget by your conduct that you are a man, and 
that your real superiority over the animal consists in the pru- 
dent exercise of your reasoning powers. Brute force is not your 
forte, and the'instant you give way to passion your reason must 
yield to the control of blind instinct, and you at once abdicate 
your intellectual superiority over the animal. Try to prove, 
by the example of your actions in the performance of the duty, 
that to be a good horseman, requires higher qualifications of 
fitness than that of the huckstering dishonesty and depravity 
so generally evinced in the conduct of those claiming the 
distinction. 







ART OF SHOEING. 



IF we examine the horse's foot while in its natural state, it 
will be found to be almost round, and very elastic at the 
heel ; the frog broad, plump, and of a soft, yielding character ; 
the commissures ojDen and well defined, and the sole concave; 
the outside of the crust, from the heel to the toe, increased 
from a slight level to an angle of about forty-five degrees. 
Consequently, as the hoof grows, it becomes wider and longer 
in proportion to the amount of horn secreted, and the narrower 
and shorter in proportion to the amount of horn cut away 
from the ground surface. If a shoe were fitted nicely and ac- 
curately to the foot after being dressed down well, it would be 
found to be too narrow and short for the same foot after a lapse 
of a few weeks. Now if an unyielding shoe of iron is nailed 
firmly to this naturally enlarging and elastic hoof, it prevents 
its natural freedom of expansion almost wholly, and does not, 
as the foot grows down, allow it to become wider at the quarters, 
in proportion to the quantity of horn grown, as before being 
shod; and consequently, the foot changes, from the continued 
effect of the restraint, from an almost round, healthy foot, to a 
contracted and unhealthy condition, as generally seen in horses 
shod for a few years. The principles which should govern in 
shoeing are few and simple, and it is surprising that a matter 
involving such serious consequences should be conducted with 
so little consideration. The object of the shoer should be, in 
trimming and preparing the hoof for the shoe, to keep the foot 
natural, and this involves: 

First — The cutting away of any undue accumulation <if 
horn affecting in the least its health and freedom. 

Second — To carry out in the form of the shoe that of the 
foot as nearly as possible. 



ART OF SHOEING. 29 

Third— To fit and fasten the shoe to the foot so as to inter- 
fere least with its liealtli and elasticity. 

The object in preparing the foot for tlie shoe sliould be to 
remove any undue accumulation of horn designed to prevent 
its natural bearing, and the free, healthy action of its parts, and 
requires the cutting away of about the proportion which con- 
tract with the ground would have worn off, or so much as had 
grown since being shod last. If the shoes have been on a 
month, then the proportion of horn secreted in the time is to 
be removed. If on two months then the proportion of two 
months' growth. No definite rule can be given ; the judgment 
must be governed by the circumstances of the case. The 
stronger and more rapid the growth of the foot, the more must 
be cut away ; and the weaker and less horn produced, the less, 
to the extreme of simply leveling the crust a little, the better 
to conform to the shoe. There is, generally, a far more rapid 
growth of horn at the toe than at either the heels or the 
quarters ; more, therefore, will require to be taken off the toe 
than off other parts. Therefore shorten the toe and lower the 
heels until you succeed in bringing down the bearing surface 
of the hoof upon the shoe, to almost a level with the live horn 
of the sole. Be careful to make the heels level. 

Having lowered the crust to the necessary extent with the 
buttress or knife, smooth it down level with the rasp. The 
sole and frog detach from old horn by exfoliation, as it becomes 
superabundant. The sole, therefore, would not need paring 
were it not for the restraining effect of the shoe upon the gen- 
eral function of the foot, which is liable to prevent such de- 
tachment of the horn. 

When this is the case the sole should be proi^erly dressed 
out with an English shave, the end of which is shaped like an 
iron used at saw mills to mark and measure boards. The but- 
tress is too large and square-edged to jdress out so concave a 
surface properly, and unless great care is exercised it will not 
only penetrate through the sole in some places, but leave others 
entirely neglected. While a good workman may work well 
with almost any kind of tool, such have also the faculty of 
adapting tools to the work. A horse's foot is not to be hacked 
and cut as if only a block of lifeless wood, and even if a lifeless 
machine, what care would be found necessary to preserve its 



30 ART OF SHOEING. 



harmony of action complete ? The buttress does not seem to 
us to be at all adapted to dressing out the sole, and should no| 
be used for that purpose. AVhile we are obliged to find fault 
with the carelessness of blacksmiths in this respect, it is with 
the spirit of kindness, sensible that we ourselves are only dull 
pupils in the work of reform, and perhaps deserving severe 
criticism. 

We would be particular also in impressing the necessity of 
not confounding the bars with the substance of the sole, and 
cutting them down to a common level with the sole. Any man 
of common sense can see that the bearing of the bars should be 
equal to the outside of the crust upon the shoe, and that they 
offer a decided resistance to the contraction of the heels. The 
cutting away of the bars to give the heels an open appearance 
is inexcusable, and should not be done. 

In a natural,' healthy condition the frog has a line of bear- 
ing with the hoof, and by its elastic nature acts as a safeguard 
to the delicate machinery of the foot immediately over it, and 
helps to preserve the foot in its natural state, by keeping the 
heels spread. The frog should never be trimmed or cut except 
in rare cases. It seems to be wisely intended to give life and 
health to the foot. Permitting the heels to grow down, with 
the addition of high-heeled shoes, raises the frog from its 
natural position and causes it to shrink and harden, and bears 
in consequence an important influence in setting up a diseased 
action that usually results in contraction of the foot. If the 
heels are square and high, and the hoof presents rather a long, 
narrow appearance, and is hollow on the bottom, there is a 
state of contraction going on, and you must not hesitate to dress 
down thoroughly. Do not hesitate because the foot will appear 
small ; cut away until you are well down to a level with the 
like horn of the sole, and if the foot is weak, use the same pru- 
dence in not cutting it away too much. The shoer must also 
bear in mind that the sole must not rest upon the shoe. The 
sole when not clogged with old horn, acts as a spring to the 
weight of the horse ; and if it rests upon the shoe an inflam- 
mation may be caused by the pressure of the coffin bone upon 
the sensitive laminae, which is liable in consequence to be so 
bruised as to cause soreness and inflammation. The effect of 
such bruises are most common at the angle of the inner heel, 



ART OF SHOEING. 31 

where the descending heel of the coffin bone, forcibly pressing 
the soft, sensible sole upon the horny sole, is apt to rupture one 
or more of the small blood vessels of the delicate fleshy sub- 
stance connecting the crust to the coffin bone of the part, caus- 
ing red spots called corns. Let the foot be so dressed down, 
and the shoe so approximate, that the bearing will come evenly 
upon the crust all the way round, without the sole touching 
the shoe. This requires the crust to be dressed level, and though 
well down to the live horn of the sole, it should always be left 
a little higher. The corners between the bars and crust should 
be well pared out, so that there is no danger of the sole resting 
upon the shoe. 

Presuming that we have said enough on the subject of par- 
ing, we will now consider the 

Shoe. 

The main object should be to have the shoe so formed as to 
size, weight, fitting and fastening, as to combine the most ad- 
vantages of protection, and preserve, as best, the natural tread 
of the foot ; in weight it should be proportioned to the work 
or employment of the horse. The foot should not be loaded 
with more iron than is necessary to preserve it. If the hoof is 
light, the shoe should be light also; but if the horse works 
principally on the road, his shoe should be rather heavy. In 
its natural state, the foot has a concave sole surface, which 
seems to oflfer the greatest fulcrum of resistance to the horse 
when traveling. Shoes should be fashioned on this principle, 
for aside from the advantages of lightness and strength, they 
are considered to be an improvement upon the common flat 
shoe. 

George H. Dadd, veterinary surgeon, said lately in a letter 
on shoeing, " The action of concave feet may be compared to 
that of the claws of a cat, or the nails of the fingers and toes 
of man ; the nails and toes are the fulcrum ; they grasp, as it 
were, the bodies with which they come in contact, and thus 
secure a fulcrum of resistance to the horse when traveling or 
grasping. Now in order to preserve the natural mechanical 
action of the horn and sole, the ground surface of the shoe must 
correspond exactly with the gl'ound surface of the foot; that is, 
the ground surface of the shoe must be beveled cup fashion ; its 



32 ART OF SHOEING. 

outer edge being prominent, corresponding to the lower and 
outer rim of the hoof ; while the shoe being hollow it resembles 
the natural concave cavity of the sole of the foot. 

" No matter what may be the form of the foot, whether it 
be high or low-heeled, contracted at the heels, lengthened or 
shortened at the toe, or having a concave or convex sole, it 
matters not, the ground surface of the shoe must be concave. 
In every other part of the shoe, alterations, deviations from 
any given rule or form, are needed, in consequence of the ever 
varying form of the foot, and the condition of the same, both 
as regards health and disease ; but the sole of the foot being 
concave, presents a pattern for the ground surface of the shoe, 
which the smith with all his skill cannot improve on ; and if 
all such craftsmen were to follow this pattern more closely than 
they do, there would be fewer accidents in falling, and a less 
number of lame horses." 

The shoe should be of an equal thickness all the way round, 
perfectly level on the top side, and concave on the ground sur- 
face. We cannot see the propriety, urged by a standard author, 
of seating every shoe alike, and of carrying it well back to the 
heel. Seating appears to be necessary only for flat-footed 
horses, for the inside edge of the shoe must be lowered from the 
possible bearing of the sole, and enough to run a pricker round 
between the shoe and hoof, to remove any gravel or foreign 
matter that may find a lodgment between the sole and shoe. 
If there is much space between the sole and shoe it invites the 
accumulation of gravel and other substances injurious to the 
foot. If the seating is carried well back to the shoe, so wide 
that the heels, instead of bearing on a level surface, as they 
should, come down upon this inclined plane, it tends to crowd 
them together. If the shoe is not wide in web, and the foot 
strong and arched, it may be made entirely level on the top. 
At all events that portion upon which rests the heels and crust 
must be level, and should be fitted accurately. The shoe should 
be continued completely round towards the heels as far as the 
crust extends, as large as the full, unrasped hoof; but no part 
must project beyond it, excepting at the extreme of the heels. 
The expansion of the heels, and the growth of the foot, require 
that the shoe should be long and wide enough at the heels to 
allow for the natural growth, of the foot in the time it is calcu- 



ART OF SHOEING. 33 

lated the shoe should be on before being re-set ; for as the foot 
enlarges the shoe is brought forward, until it loses its original 
proportion, and becomes too short and narrow. The shoe may- 
be a quarter of an inch wider and longer than the extreme 
bearing of the heels. The nail holes should be punched coarse, 
and in the centre of the web. If the hind shoe, four on the 
side and well forward ; if the forward shoe, four on the outside 
and two or three well forward in the inside toe, as found neces- 
sary to retain the shoe. The manner of fastening the shoe is 
what really affects the foot, and which requires the most special 
attention in shoeing. For the foot, being elastic, expands in 
the same degree to the weight of the body on tne rough that it 
does on the nicely fitted shoe. It is the number and position of 
the nails that really affect the foot. If they are placed well 
back in the quarters, four on a side, as is common, the crust is 
held as firmly to this unyielding shoe as if in a vise, which ut- 
terly prevents the free action necessary to its health. Inflam- 
mation of the sensible laminae is produced, which causes con- 
traction, and the consefquent derangement of the whole foot. 
No matter how well shaped a boot may be, if it is too short 
and small for the free action of the foot when in use, it is a 
cause of continual torment, and induces the irritation of 
inverted toe nails and corns of the most aggravating character. 

The principle is precisely the same in shoeing horses. If 
the free natural expansion of the foot is prevented by the shoe 
being so nailed to the hoof as to obstruct its expansion and the 
possibility of the quarters spreading in proportion to the growth 
of the hoof, there must result an irritation of the fleshy sub- 
stance between the crust and cofiin bone, that ultimately sets 
up so much diseased action of the parts, as to cause contraction 
and navicular disease. Now shoes may be securely fastened 
without causing such mischief, if the following method of 
nailing be observed : 

Drive four nails on the outer side of the foot, same as com- 
mon, while you drive but two or three well forward in the toe 
of the opposite, which leaves the inner quarter virtually free 
and independent of the shoe ; for the outside of the foot being 
the only part fastened, carries the whole shoe with it at every 
expansion, while the inner side being unattached, expands in- 
dependently of it, and the foot is left, as nearly as possible, in 



34 ART OF SHOEING. 

a state of nature, so far as its power of expansion is concerned. 
The reader may ask, will this style of nailing hold shoes on 
the foot of horses of all work ? I answer, yes. Experience has 
fully demonstrated that seven nails will hold shoes on ordinary 
feet, for any purpose, if the shoes are properly fitted, for a 
period of from four to seven weeks, which is as long as shoes 
ought to be on without resetting. 

If seven nails are found to be necessary, you can drive three 
in a space of an inch and a quarter, well forward in the toe, 
though in most cases two will be found to answer the purpose. 
Turn down the clinches strongly. Nothing should be done for 
what is called fancy. The hoof should never be rasped or filed 
above the clinches. The hoof is covered by a peculiar enamel 
that prevents the too rapid evaporation of moisture from the 
horn, and must not be disturbed. The practice of rasping, 
filing, and sand-papering the hoof to make it look nice, only 
produces mischief and should not be permitted. 

Horses kept for light driving and irregular work, and par- 
ticularly those having rather square, upright heels, should be 
shod on the one-side nailing principle, as the feet of such 
horses are much disposed to contraction. So far as observation 
and experience teach, it is settled that proper attention to par- 
ing down the feet and fastening the shoe, so as not to interfere 
with the free expansion of ilie hoof, as above, will remedy con- 
traction; though attention to growing down the crust, and the 
application of shoes that are slightly convex, or beveled out, 
so as to have a tendency to spread the heels when the weight 
of the body is thrown upon the fgot, and fastening on the prin- 
ciple of the inside quarter being left free, is regarded as much 
better. But the blacksmith must be a good workman to fashion 
and fit a shoe in this way properly. By observing the grain of 
the foot, it will be seen that the fibres of the hoof run from the 
top of the foot, or coronary border, towards the toe, in most 
feet, at an angle of about forty-five degrees. It will be plain, 
then, that if the nails are driven with the grain of the horn, 
they will drive much easier, and hold better, and be less liable 
to cut and crack the fibers. The nails should not be driven 
higher in the crust than seven-eighths of an inch*, and not so 
deep as to possibly strike through to the quick. If the foot is 
light, and shows a thin, delicate crust, the nails should be small, 



ART OF SHOEING. 35 

and not driven high or deep into the horn. As a rule, the fewer 
and smaller the nails used, provided they secure the shoe to the 
foot with safety, the better. Shoes should be re-set or re-placed 
as often as four or six weeks; though in some cases it may not 
be necessary to re-set quite so often. It is a positive necessity 
at twelve, and must not be neglected longer than seven or eight 
weeks. Great care should be taken not to let shoes remain too 
long on colts and young horses, for they are apt to cause corns 
and contracted feet. 

Interfering Shoes. 

To prevent interfering, know first what part of the foot 
hits the opposite ankle. This you can do by wrapping the 
ankle witli a rag nicely, which color with some kind of color- 
ing matter, over where tlie opposite foot hits. Then drive the 
horse until you can discover, by some of this coloring matter 
adhering, what portion of tlie crust hits the ankle. Remove 
this portion of the crust, and have the shoe well set under the 
foot, but carefully fitted, so as to support tlie foot safely by the 
bearing of the bar and heel. The hoof should be pared lowest 
on the outside, to turn the ankle, that the otlier hoof may pass 
clear. Yet if the inside sole is not dressed, the rim soon breaks, 
and the inside is found to be actually lower than the outside. 
Shoes, to prevent interfering, should be light and of narrow 
web on the inside, with three nail holes near tlie toe. They 
should be straight at the point where they come in contact 
with the ankle of the opposite leg. By adhering strictly to 
tliis principle of paring the foot, and fitting and fastening the 
shoe, you will prevent a recurrence of the difficulty. 

Shoes, to prevent over-reaching, sliould be long, and for the 
forward feet heavy, especially at the heels; and for the hind 
feet light, with heavy toes. The hoof should be well pared at 
the toe. 

To Cure Corns. 

Cut the horn well down, but not to the quick; fit the shoe 
so that it does not press upon the part. Then saturate well 
with pine or sap gum, which is found exuding from pine trees 
when cut. Fill the part nicely with tow, and put on the shoe, 
remembering that the shoe must be so fitted as not to oblige 
the part to support but very slightly, if any, the weight of the 



ART OF SHOEING. 



horse. This remedy was given us by an intelligent shoer, and 
is certainly good. Horses with corns must be oftener and more 
carefully shod, than those free from them. 

In shoeing, strive to keep the form of the foot natural. K 
the hoofs are not flat and weak, the shoes should set out evenly 
to the edge of the crust under the toe. Let the nails be driven 
well forward in the toe, or what is better, be placed well round 
in the outside quarter, and as far forward in the toe of the 
inside as possible, and as few as will be found by experience 
necessary to retain the shoe. Be positive in the enforcement 
of this rule; and lastly, have the shoes re-set once in every six 
or seven weeks. 

Advice to Blacksmiths on Slioeing Young Animals. 

Let me enjoin you, for humanity's sake, that when you 
first undertake to shoe a young animal, you will not forget the 
value of kind treatment. Keep its head turned away from the 
glaring fire, the clinking anvil, etc., etc. Let the man whom 
he has been accustomed to, the groom or owner, stand at his 
head, and talk to him kindly. When you approach him for 
the first time, let it be without those implements you are to use 
in his shoeing. Speak to him gently, then take up his foot. 
If he refuse to let you do this, let the person having him in 
charge do it. A young animal will allow this with a person 
he is accustomed to, when he will repel a stranger. By treat- 
ing him kindly you can make him understand what is w^anted ; 
by abusing him you will only frighten him into obstinacy. 




MISCELLANEOUS, 



Horseback Riding.— A few Hints for tlie Ladies. 

As the delightful and healthful exercise of horseback riding 
is becoming more fashionable every year, the following hints 
will help many who are novices in the art of managing a 
horse, and some who think they know all about it. 

" There are few prettier sights than fair equestriennes, pro- 
vided they know how to ride ; and although it seems paradoxi- 
cal to say so, yet it is not every fair equestrienne who can ride. 
No lady can use a spur without damaging her habit more than 
her horse. Extreme neatness is the desideratum in a rider's 
make up. No flying ribbons or feathers, but a plainly made, 
well fitting cloth habit, with a white linen collar and cuffs, 
fastened without ribbon or color, unless it be of a silk hand- 
kerchief round the throat. A top hat with a lace veil, for use 
as well as ornament, twisted round it and over the hair, black 
gloves, and nothing can look better than any lady when so at- 
tired. 

" Your horse is at the door, and now comes the tug of war. 
You have got to arrive at the top of fifteen it may be sixteen 
hands. Puzzling as the performance appears as you stand on 
the ground by his side, and the monster towers above you, 
nothing but knack is wanted. Do not be in a hurry. Place 
the ri^ht hand firmly on the left pommel, and the left hand 
firmly on the squire's or servant's shoulder. Stand steadily 
on the right leg, and place the left foot in his right hand. 
Wait one minute, until you are both sure the other is ready, 
and if you spring at the moment that he lifts his hand you are 
mounted gracefully, without an appearance even of difficulty. 

It is quite unnecessary to send a man's hat flying into the 
road, or to put your knees into his eyes ; nor need he grasp 
you fast, as if you were a sack of flour fixed to a jointed crane. 



38 MISCELLANEO US. 

while you clutch and scramble up your saddle as if you were 
climbing the side of a man-of-war out of a cuddy-boat. Noth- 
ing can be more inelegant. 

'* People think they cannot help it, and rather than look so 
ridiculous they have a chair or step brought and ' get on them- 
selves.' It is much better to ' get on ' properly ; besides that, 
when you do, your habit is properly placed and straight. 
Once mounted, take up jour reins and have your stirrup long 
enough ; that is have it so long that the leg is almost straight 
before the toe can reach it. Be sure all is right ; then let your 
horse slip oft' quietly. Nothing is a sign of worse riding than 
to flurry and fluster to get off in a grand commotion, like froth, 
that subsides into flatness very soon. Sit square, the right 
knee pointing in a straight line between the horse's ears ; ride 
on the snatfle if you use a double-rein bridle, reserving the 
curb for emergencies, and treat your horse sensibly ; he will 
ai^preciate it. If he is a good one, his good qualities will be 
drawn into notice, and the worst animal, with rational treat- 
ment, shows the best he is capable of. Trotting is the pace 
at which horse and rider show to the best advantage. Any 
old plug can canter, but not every horse can trot well, nor rider 
'rise to it,' if he can. Rise to your trot straight forward, with- 
out stooping, keeping the action of your body with that of 
your horse. Your position should always be as if your eyes 
were fixed between the horse's ears. Some people rise quite 
independently^ of the horse's action, and having got their 
weight off the saddle on to their left leg, they stand in their 
stirrups, and only preserve their equilibrium, and get back into 
the saddle by a sort of twist, which has the appearance of the 
corkscrew that is turning in the cork. When this movement 
is apparent we may know that a fast trot would be impossible. 
Should the pace increase, the rider would find it hopeless to 
try and screw back, therefore she would cease to rise, and the 
sudden tightening of the rein breaks the trot into a canter, and 
the most beautiful action of the horse is lost. The art of riding 
is in the hand. A horse walks, trots or gallops, his worst or 
his best, according to the handling he receives. Keep the left 
knee slightly pressed to the saddle, and rise from it by the 
muscular action of the limb from the knee to the waist, rather 
than give pressure of the foot in the stirrup. The stirrup is 
intended rather to rest the leg than for anything else. 



MISCELLANEOUS. 39 

"A spur is never needed. There is no horse but what a 
woman can ride better without the spur than with it. Try 
and let a horse understand what you want him to do, and in 
nine cases out of ten, if you can do tliis, lie will do what is 
required much better for himself than you can teach him. 

" Usually the rider is uncertain, first, what she wants done ; 
then, often, especially if leaping is intended, her courage fails 
her, her nervousness is instantly communicated to the horse — 
the reins are more instantaneous conductors than any telegraph 
wire ever could be ; and then he is blamed, when thus hurried 
and confused, for misunderstanding and blundering through 
what, if left to himself, he would have done perfectly well. 
Always have both hands ready for the reins, so that at any 
moment, by taking them two in each hand, the most perfect 
control is obtained. A horse cannot turn if you keep his head 
straight, the hands low, and the whip held upward across the 
rider's knees. It is then ready, without difficulty, for instantly 
striking the horse on either shoulder or flank, as may be needed. 
A whip should never be carried for ornament, but use ; and 
should never touch a horse but in chastisement. Unless it be 
carried upright in this way, it is impossibfe to avoid its con- 
stantly tickling the right flank. This distracts a restive horse, 
and the most unimpressible acquire a kind of motion which is 
very ugly." 

Treatment of the Horse on the Road. 

Young man, I see you are about to take a drive this morn- 
ing and will offer you some advice. Your horse is restive and 
wants to be off before you are ready. You should teach him 
to stand, by following directions given on preceding pages. 
See that the harness is all right and buckled up sd as to give 
the horse plenty of room for action, and not so much as to 
make a plunge at crossing every little break or gutter, but just 
as if the horse and carriage were built together. Slack the 
check-rein, if you have one, and let the horse carry his head 
naturally, he will travel better, endure longer and show his 
true gait. Step in and lay hold of the reins gently, and by a 
gentle motion let the horse understand that you wish him to 
start, or speak gently to him ; he knows what is to be done, and 
awaits the order patiently. 



40 MISCELLANEOUS. 

Now, as your horse has just been fed, drive him at a very 
gentle pace for the first two or three miles until he warms up 
and his body becomes lighter. Keep your hand steady with a 
gentle pressure on the bit — no jerking or switching of the 
reins. If more speed is wanted speak to him soothingly and 
in a gentle manner what you want him to do, and if he is a 
" free horse " he will try to do it ; but, if he is lazy and inclin- 
ed to lag apply the whip, but be careful not to apply it any 
harder than is necessary to bring him up to the required speed. 
If you should call on some friend before completing your jour- 
ney, don't permit your horse to stand in the wind or cold 
without being well blanketed, as very serious diseases are con- 
tracted by this carelessness. If you are long on the road, don't 
forget to water your horse occasionally, but care should be 
taken not to let him drink too much when heated ; a little and 
often, say at every watering place, is the best rule. If your 
horse gets frightened at any unusual sight or noise, do not whip 
him, for if you do he will connect the whipping with the object. 
that alarmed him and make him afraid of it ever after. If he 
merely shies at an object, give him time to examine it, which 
with some encouraging words from the driver will persuade 
him to pass it. When you return, have the harness removed 
at once and the horse rubbed down with a wisp of straw or hay. 
Give him a bite of grass or hay and let him cool off before being 
watered or fed. Every one who handles a horse or has any- 
thing to do with one, should in the first place cultivate his ac- 
quaintance; let him know that you are his friend, and prove 
it to him by your kind treatment; he needs this to inspire 
confidence and when that is gained, he is your humble servant. 

The "Check Rein." 

One of the barbarisms of the present day is the unmerciful 
use made of the check rein to compel a horse, while being 
driven to a carriage, to hold his head in an unnatural and pain- 
ful position. This rein is tightened to such an extent by the 
fancy horseman, that the animal is unable to see the ground 
where he is compelled to place his foot-steps, and that too, 
while being driven at the top of his speed. 

If the practice were confined to the " fancy " alone, the re- 
sult would not be so bad ; but we see it followed up by grave 



MISCELLANEOUS. 41 

and gay, old and young, male and female (for it is quite com- 
mon to meet with a lady who prides herself on being a good 
" whip "). To this feature of woman's rights we have no par- 
ticular objection, if she will only slacken the " check " and let 
the horse hold his head, while traveling, in its natural posi- 
tion. 

Hints on Colts, 
Remember that the early part of the life of a colt determines 
in a great measure, whether at maturity the animal will be 
highly valuable or worthless. Observe carefully and early how 
a colt carries his feet, his fore feet in particular; if he inclines 
to carry them too near the ground, turn him into a pasture 
which has a very rough surface. In this way he will get into 
the habit of raising his feet high. If he inclines to point his 
toes down, so as to make him likely to trip, he ought to be shod 
early, and the shoes should be made thick before and thin be- 
hind, to give him a habit of raising his toes. By all means 
use kindness and gentleness toward a colt, so that he may be- 
come docile, fearless, and put confidence in his master. 

Management of Young Colts. 

Farmers are apt to go to one of two extremes with their 
colts — either to halter them and drag them about through the 
heat of summer on roads of all kinds, alongside the dams at 
work, or else to turn them out to run wild during the first 
six months of their existence, out of sight and hearing of 
human beings. Now, we take exception to both these 
methods of proceeding — to the first, because the limbs and 
feet of the young animal are tender and apt to be strained and 
bruised by being compelled to keep up with the dam (even 
when walking) for several consecutive miles. The young colt 
requires frequent rest, and should be at liberty to lie down 
whenever inclination prompts. When the colt becomes tired 
it drags on its halter, straining the cords of the neck, back and 
legs. It is also disadvantageous to allow the young animal to 
run too long without subjection, for when the attempt is made 
he will resist with great force and often with injury. I am 
strongly opposed, both in principle and practice to " breaking 
colts " that is allowing them to attain the age of two or more 
years before they are taken in hand for learning the principles 



42 MISCELLANEOUS. ' 

which are to form so important a part in their future life. 
There should be no "breaking" about it. The education 
should begin as soon as the colt is born, and if properly attend- 
ed to will be perfect by the time he is large enough to drive. 
First get the confidence and good will of the animal. This 
you can do by caressing it and arming yourself with salt, ap- 
ples and a little sugar, etc., and pay them out in small quanti- 
ties to the animal, letting it follow you about the yard, which 
it will do for the sake of the goodies as persistently as a dog or 
a vagrant to whom you have given good bits or a penny. 

Being led or tied with a halter should be his first lesson, 
and the sooner he learns it is the shorter the struggle and the 
more permanent the lesson ; never give him a chance to break 
loose, for once done, and he will remember it for a long time, 
and if the lesson be too often repeated, he will make a profi- 
cient in this not desirable art. 

During the winter the colt should stand haltered a portion 
of the time, either in his stable or out in the open air — the 
latter for at least a portion of every day ; use the currycomb 
and brush freely. Remember you are forming the future horse, 
and care now taken, either in his appearance or character, is 
by no means lost. During the operation of halter " breaking," 
great care should be taken always to make him walk fast — 
fast walking should be made a part of his education, and he 
will never forget it during his after life. I know of no colt 
which may not be made a good walker if properly trained 
when young, but this is a fast time, and walking is too slow 
to keep up with it. 

Never suffer any one to strike or yell at a colt ; one such 
barbarous act will cause a day's work to overcome its bad 
effect. When first cleaning him avoid the head — then ap- 
proach that part tenderly, and if he resists, go to some other 
point. In a few moments return, and so continue until he 
submits with pleasure. Your colt is then half broken. If 
at any time the colt is left in the stable or allowed to follow 
while the mare is put to hard work or driven any distance, let 
him fill himself before the mother is harnessed, and on her re- 
turn, kept away if the mare's blood is heated, until it has cool- 
ed oflf. Colts are easily injured by taking heated milk, and do 
not recover from the effects for a year or more — in fact, never 



MISCELLANEO US. 43 

get entirely over it, for they become reduced in flesh, get lousy, 
shed their hair, and barely pass through the first year of their 
existence, whicli is the most critical period of their growth 
and development. Wean the colt at five or six months old, 
first teaching him, while suckling the mare, to eat oats. 
When taken from the dam confine the colt closely, and put 
them out of hearing of each other for one week. During the 
first winter feed daily two quarts of oats and all the hay the 
colt will eat. This, with good warm shelter, will keep him 
growing and improving. Don't turn out in spring till the 
weather is settled and warm, and a full bite of grass. 

The first year makes or ruins the colt. It is the most im- 
portant of his life. Keep him fat at first year, whatever you 
may do afterwards, for this year decides whether he is to be a 
full grown horse or a miserable pony — no after care can atone 
for neglect during the first twelve months. Good pasture 
(mountain if possible) the next season and plenty of hay the 
next winter, with a quart of grain if convenient, will bring 
you a finely formed, powerful two-year old. If a horse, alter 
him early, before fiy time, and turn to good grass. In the fall 
begin to break, by bitting griidually tighter each day; within 
two weeks you have his head as high and graceful as nature 
allows. The neck should be arched and the face vertical, 
without constraint. When the bitting is accomplished, put on 
your harness and let the straps dangle around his legs ; con- 
tinue this until he pays no attention to them, but do not over- 
fatigue the colt either in the bitting bridle or harness. The 
bending of the neck is extremely j)ainful and should be done 
by degrees, the work requiring two weeks. While in the bit- 
ting bridle, exercise him on a circle to the right and left 
alternately, the radius never less than ten to fifteen feet, other- 
wise he will learn to step too short. Make him walk, and 
walk fast while walking ; no gait is more important, and our 
agricultural societies should offer premiums for fast walkers. 
While harnessed, accustom the colt to wagons, sulkies, etc., by 
running them round and about him. Then harness to the 
sulky and lead him several days until he no longer notices the 
pushing or jostling of the vehicle. Then let one get in while 
another leads, and so gradually get him accustomed to all 
around him. On finding he is not hurt he will soon become 



44 MISCELLANEOUS. 

quiet. Occasionally harness double with a steady, quiet, horse, 
but put no load on. Teach him to back by standing in front 
and pressing on the bit — calling out back, etc. Always caress 
him when he has done his duty. During the second winter 
hitch in double, making the other horse draw all the weight, 
and drive for a short distance, say one-quarter of a mile at a 
time, alternately fast and slow. Train your colt to three gaits 
in harness — the fast walk always, the moderate or road gait 
for distance, and the rapid trot. As if we desire to make a 
man a good dancer we would begin young while the limbs 
were nimble and the action graceful — so if we desire a fast 
walker and a fast trotter too, we must take the colt while 
young, and as when pressed he will take up the fast trot in- 
stead of the gallop so natural in after years. 

Jockey Tricks. 

^How to Make a Horse Apx)ear as though He mas Badly 
Foundered.— Take a fine wire and fasten tight around fetlock, 
between foot and heel ; smooth hair over it. In twenty min- 
utes horse will show lame. Do not leave on over nine hours. 
— To Make a Horse Lame. — Take a single hair from tail, put 
through eye of a needle, lift front leg and press skin between 
outer and middle tendon or cord ; shove needle through, cut off 
hair each side and let foot down ; horse will go lame in twenty 
minutes. 

How to Make a Horse Stand by his Food and not Touch it. 
— Grease the front teeth and roof of the mouth with common 
beef tallow, and he will not eat till you wash it out. This, in 
conjunction with the above, will consummate a complete 
founder. 

How to Cure a Horse of the Crib or Sucking Wind. — Saw 
between the upper teeth to the gums. 

How to Put a Young Cou7itenance on a Horse. — Make a 
small incision in the sunken place over the eye ; insert the 
point of a goose quill and blow it up ; close the external wound 
with thread, and it is done. 

To Cover Up the Heaves. — Drench the horse with one- 
fourth pound common bird shot, and he will not heave till 
they pass through him. 



MISCELLANEO US. 45 

To Make a Horse Appear as if He had the Glanders. — 
Melt four ounces fresh butter and pour it into his ear. 

To Distinguish between Distemper and Glanders. — The 
discharge from the nose in glanders will sink in water ; in dis- 
temper it floats. 

Hoiv to Make a True-Pulling Horse Balk. — Take tincture 
cantharides one ounce, and corrosive sublimate one drachm ; 
mix, and bathe his shoulders at night. 

How to Nerve a Horse that is Lame. — Make a small incision 
about half way from the knee to the joint on the outside of the 
leg, and at the back part of the shin bone you will find a small 
white tendon or cord ; cut il off', and close the external wound 
with a stitch, and he will walk off" on the hardest pavement 
and not limp a particle. 

How to tell a Horse's Age. 

The number of horse's teeth is forty — twenty-four molar 
or jaw teeth, twelve incisor or front teeth, and four tusks or 
canine teeth between the molars and incisors, but usually 
wanting in the mare. A few days after birth the colt puts 
forth two small front teeth in the upper and lower jaws, and 
soon after two more ; these are called nippers ; the next four 
shortly make their appearance, and the four corner teeth come 
a few months later. These twelve teeth in front of the mouth, 
continue without much alteration until the colt is two years 
old. 

At two years old, colt sheds two centre nippers. 

At three years old, colt sheds the adjoining teeth. 

At four years old, colt sheds outer or corner teeth. 

At five years old,* bridle tooth is up, and the horse is now 
said to have a full mouth. 

At six years old, cups leave two centre teeth below. 

At seven years old, cups leave adjoining teeth. 

At eight years old, cups leave outer or corner teeth. 

At nine years old, cups leave two centre nippers. 

At ten years old, cups leave adjoining teeth. 

At eleven years old, cups leave corner upper teeth. 

At twelve years or past, groove on inside of bridle tooth 
disappears in horse.' Mares very seldom have them. When 
they do they are no criterion to be guided by. 



RECIPES 



How to Treat when Well and Cure 
v/hen Sick. 



)t{hE following recipes have been gathered from sources entitled to the 
j fullest confidence, as remedies of great value, and some of them at an 
unusual cost, and they are presented with the hope of being fully ap- 
preciated. 

It is well to remember that to keep horses in health is much more im- 
portant, less troublesome, and requires less skill than to cure sick ones. 
Abuse, overwork and exposure should be guarded against if the serious 
consequences of inflammation of the lungs, colic, etc., ai'e to be avoided ; and 
should your horse be sick it is always best to be cautious about doctoring 
too much, or until you are sure of what is necessary to be done. 

Prevention of Horse Diseases. 

It is said that "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." We 
subscribe to that doctrine. 

As a general rule, horses become diseased through want of proper care 
and attention. They shoiald have plenty of exercise, and be well groomed ; 
the currycomb is to" the horse what a bath is to mankind. It removes im- 
purities, promotes a healthy action of the skin, and equalizes the electric 
fluid. It is the poor man's friend, for a horse curried twice daily will need 
only half the grain of a horse not curried. The man of small means more 
frequently neglects this point of economy than the wealthy. 

Take a colt, the offspring of sound parents, give it plenty of grass, or hay 
well cured, with pure clean water whenever it wants to drink; keep it 
comfortably warm in winter in a stable well ventilated, moderately light, 
the floor kept clean, well sprinkled with gypsum, (ground plaster,) an op- 
portunity to exercise in playfulness every day of good weather, an oppor- 
tunity of shelter from the hot sun or storms in summer, and at maturity 
you will have a sound horse. 

We will presume that the horse has been trained during his coltship, 
according to instructions previously given, and that he has been fed a lit- 
tle gi-ain, gradually, as he approached maturity. Now, there are some 
things that should not be done. 

The horse should not be overloaded or strained ; he should not be per- 
mitted to cool too fast when heated by labor or other exercise; he should 
not be exposed to cold rain or storms unless he is kept in motion, and 
whenever the labor or other exercise ceases, he should be stabled and 
rubbed with a wisp or dry cloth until he is thoroughly dry, body and 
limbs. When taken from the stable after a full feeft, he should not be put to 
heavy draught, nor to fast travel, until he has had some moderate exercise, 
that he may discharge an'over gorged body. With these few instructions, 



RECIPES. 47 

and othei- precautions that will suggest themselves to a sensible horse- 
man, there will be no heaves, no blindness, no spavin, no spring halt, 
no splint, no grease in the heels, and the horse will be healthy and useful 
until he dies of old age. Is not a good horse worth all this care for the 
purpose of keeping him in good health? 

Hints on Feeding and Care of Horses. 

As the horse is kept for his muscle, he m^ust have food to supply muscle. 
But it is found, also, that great muscular exertion requires more rapid 
respiration, and this respiration is sustained by the carbon of the food • 
therefore there must be a proper balance between the carbonaceous and 
nitrogenus elements of the food. Corn meal contains ten per cent, of 
muscle sustaining food, and sixty-eight per cent, of heat or fat-producing 
food. This contains too much carbon and too little nitrogen as a principal 
food for horses. It is too heating and fattening, and deficient in muscular 
force. Let us examine a few of the foods sometimes given to horses : 

On nitrogenous or muscle-forming food, the oat contains 15 per cent.; the 
pea 24; oil meal, 28 ; wheat and rye bran, 16; barley, 9; rye flour, 10; mil- 
let, 14; timothy hay, 10 ; i-ed clover, 16 per cent. Of carbonaceous or heat 
and fat producing food, the oat contains 60 per cent. ; the pea, 51 ; oil meal, 
42; wheat and rye bran, 55; barley, 65; rye flour, 72; millet, 62; timothy 
hay, 47 ; red clover, 40 per cent. It will be seen that of the grains given 
above, the oat contains four of heat and fat-producing food to one of 
muscle-forming matter, and this, for great muscular exertion, is found to 
be the best proportion. 

The fast horse men have long since decided in favor of oats, combined 
sometimes with wheat bran, which has about the same proportion. It 
will also be observed that clover hay is very rich in muscle-forming food; 
but there is a limit to the digestion of svich bulky food, and therefore only 
a certain amount can be given to a horse under hard labor. 

We must not omit to note a very common error in feeding horses, which 
has cost the life of many a noble animal— feeding corn meal, or other con- 
centrated food alone. Corn meal, eaten alone, goes into the stomach of 
the horse in the solid state of a housewife's dough. To digest this mass 
the gastric juice must penetrate and circulate through it. But, as this 
cannot be done, the digesting fluid operates only on" the surface of the 
dough. The consequence is, that before it can be digested, fever of the 
stomach is produced, and sometimes death. But when the meal is mixed 
with cut hay and moistened so the meal adheres to it, the hay separates 
the particles of meal so the gastric juice circulates through it like a 
sponge. Corn meal is quite harmless, even for colts, when thus fed. 

All horses must not be fed in the same proportions, without due regard 
to their ages, their constitutions and their work. Because the impropriety 
of such a practice is self-evident. Yet it is constantly done, and is the 
basis of disease of every kind. Never use bad hay on account of its cheap- 
ness. Because there is not proper nourishment in it. Damaged corn is ex- 
ceedingly injurious. Because it brings on inflammation of the bowels 
and skin disease. Hay or grass alone will not support a horse under hard 
work. Because there is not sufficient nutritive body in either. When a 
horse is worked hard its food should chiefly be oats; if not worked hard, 
its food should chiefly be hay. Because oats supply more nourishment 
and flesh-making material than any other kind of food. Hay not so much. 
For a saddle or a coach horse, half a peck of sound oats and eighteen 
pounds of good hay are suflicient. If the hay is not good add a quarter of 
a peck more of oats. A horse which works harder may have rather more 
of each; one that works little should have less. Sprinkle the hay with 
water that has salt dissolved in it. Because it is pleasing to the animal's 
taste, and more easily digested. A teaspoonful of salt in a bucket of water 
is sufficient. 

A horse should have atleastapail of water morning and evening; or, still 
better, two-thirds of a pailful at three different times m the day. Because this 
assuages his thirst without bloating him. He should not be made to work 
directly after he has had a full draught of water ; for digestion and exer- 
tion can never go on together. . When your horse refuses food after drink- 
ing, go no farther that day. Because the poor creature is thorougly beaten. 



48 BECIPES. 



Getting Horses into Condition. 

To put a horse in the best looking condition for sale, he should be fed on 
gi-ain or corn which has been soaked about 48 hours and then kept on a 
floor till it has sprouted; it should lie about six inches thick, and be turned 
every four or five hours, being watered sometimes to keep it moist; in 
short, treated just the same as maltsters treat barley prior to being put on 
the kiln to dry ; barley is the best grain for a horse, when sprouted. Mix 
©ne pound of sulphur, one pound of rosin and two pounds of fenugreek, 
and give two tablespoon fuls every second or third night, by shaking it 
among the feed or giving it in any mash the horse is fond of. Four ounces 
of antimony mixed with the above, and one tablespoonful given, will lend 
an increased lustre to the skin and will improve the very worst looking 
brute in existence. The exercise should be chiefly walking— no violent 
sweating and no long journeys. 

When in the stable, on dry food entirely, some farmers recommend 
clover hay made from clover cut when the seed begins to shed; but this is 
very wrong, for that kind of hay is woody in the stems, and has a decided- 
ly injurious effect on the horses, producing coughing, heaves, swelled heels 
and legs, and often inflammation in the eyes. The only way in which it 
can be given without dire results, is by cutting it into chaff and wetting it, 
with some meal mixed with it. The meal has rather a scouring tendency, 
and helps to carry off humors which would otherwise be engendered ; but 
when good, wholesome, nutritious hay and oats are fed, the horse should 
eat dry, for the saliva is the natural moisture to go into the stoinach with 
the food, and is sure to be much better masticated in that state. A little 
good chafl:' mixed with the oats will, if not wet, cause horses to grind the 
oats closer, so that few will pass through whole. 

Inflammation of the Lungs. 

First, a thorough bleeding, then would give tincture veratrum viride 3^ 
ounce, laudanum 4 ounces, tincture aconite % ounce; shake well together 
and give a teaspoonful every three or four hours in some water well sweet- 
ened ; and if it does not bring down tlie pulse the dose can be gradually in- 
creased to a tablespoonful ; and as soon as the horse recovers so"Ks to eat, 
and lie down naturally, would keep him on hay alone, perhaps with a few 
carrots or potatoes ; and daily give a bran mash with saltpetrcj crude an- 
timony and sulphur, for ten or fifteen days, and you will prevent dropsy 
of the chest, which is a sequel of that disease. 

Colic. 

Sulpliur ether 1 pint ; aromatic spirits amonia 1 pint ; sweet spirits nitre 
2 pints; opium i.^ pound; asafcetida (pure) impound; camphor 3-^ pound. 
Put in a large bottle, let it stand fourteen days, with frequent shaking, 
and it Avill be fit for use. Dose, two ounces every two, three or four hours, 
until the horse is relieved. Should be given in water well sweetened. 

Anothek Remedy.— One ounce laudanum ; 1 ounce sweet spirits nitre; 
1 ounce tincture asafcetida ; 1 teaspoonful capsicum; from 2 to 3 ounces car- 
bonate soda; Vg pint whisky; 34 pint water. Mix, and give at one dose, 
and if no better in twenty-five minutes, repeat half dose. 

Spring HaSt in Horses. 

This aflection is shown to be one arising from the strain and consequent 
inflammation of an elastic cord, extending from the hock to the hoof joint. 
This cord lies immediately under the main middle vein, and in case of 
strain, the inflammation which ensues may effect the nerves and other 
parts in sympathy, calling off the mucous secretions, rendering this cord 
elastic, and thus causing a britch or halt. 

If the skin is slit by a skillful hand, four inches above the hoof of the 
eflected leg. and this cord be carefully drawn out with an awl and severed, 
it will relieve the horse of all lameness as soon as the wound is healed, 
and experience has shown that no injury results from the operation. The 
incision should be washed often with warm castile soap suds, and anoint- 
ed with sweet oil, or some healing ointment, and the horse kept quiet till 
the cure is eflected. 



RECIPES. 61 



Carrots for Horses. 

Towards the spring, when horses have been many months highly fed on 
<jorn, they are extremely serviceable, indeed necessary; during winter 
tliey sliould be used sparingly. They used to be given to race liorses in 
far greater quantities than they are now, having formerly had the char- 
acter of being good for the wind; but perhaps the only merit they can 
claim in this respect i:-^, that they keep the body cool and properly open, 
by wliioh they conduce greatly to health and condition, and consequently 
in clearness of wind. About the same thing may be said of their claims 
to producing a tine coat ; whatever conduces to health does so ; conse- 
quently carrots do. Carrots should be given whole. When first given 
they are sliglitly diuretic and laxitive. But as the liorses become accus- 
tomed to them these etfectsare not produced. To sick and idle horses they 
render corn unnecessary. They are beneficial in all chronic diseases 
of the respiratory organs. In combination with oats, they restore worn 
out horses much sooner than oats alone. They should be fed raw, in 
which state the horse prefers them. 

Cough, 

Use elecampane root, horehound and smartweed, with 6 red pepper pods 
to 2 ounces of ginger root. Boil until all the strength is extracted, then 
strain through a flannel ; to every gallon of this extract add 1 quart of 
molasses. Give 1 gill a day on his feed, or from an ox horn. 

Simple Liniment. 

Put into spirits of turpentine all the camphor gum it will cut, when for 
ordinary purposes it is fit for use; but if designed to reduce pain, add as 
mucli laudanum as there is turpentine. This liniment is as good as it is 
simple. 

Spavin. 

Five ounces euphorbeum ; 2 ounces Spanish flies, (fine); 1 ounce iodine, 
dissolved with alcohol ; 34 ounce red precipitate; 1 ounce corrossive sub- 
limate; ';, ounce quicksilver; t; ounces hog's lard; (J ounces white turpen- 
tine; I4 p()und verdigris. Melt the lard and the turpentine together, tlien 
while hot add all together. Mix well. Wlien cold it is fit for u.se. Hub it 
in tlioroughly on the spavin every day for three days, tlien wash clean 
with soap suds; omit for three days, and then repeat for three days again, 
and so on, until a perlect cure is made. Should it blister, use itcautiouslj^ 

Blood Spavin. 

One-lialf pound of blood root; 1 quart of alcohol ; '1 ounces of tannin, 
1^ pound of alum. Mix, and let it stand, shaking it several times a day till 
the strength is all in the alcohol, and bathe the spavin twice a day, rub- 
bing it in with the hand. 

Heaves. 

Take smartweed, steep it in boiling water till the strength is all out; 
give one quart every day, mixed willi bran or shorts, lor eight or ten days. 
Give green or cut feed wet with water during the operation, and it will 
cure. 

Magic Liniment. 

Two ounces oil of spike; 2 ounces origanum ; bounces hemlock ; 2ounces 
wormwood; 4 ounces sweet oil ; 2 ounces spirits ammonia; 2 ounces gum 
camplior; 2 ounces spirits turpentine; 1 quart of proof spirits, nine per 
cent.; mix well together, and bottle tigiit. For sprains, bruises, lameness, 
«&c.,this liniment is unsurpassed, and originally cost (wliich it is worth; 
SlUO. This is the same liniment, without the turpentine, wliicli has 
achieved sucii wonderful cures for iiumau ailments. For domestic pur- 
poses it is invaluable. 



52 RECIPES. 



Horse Distemper. 

If the glands of the neck are not swollen much, give half a five-cent paper 
of smoking tobacco, morning and evening, in a warm bran mash, and give 
no hay, but a little fine cut straw, wet, with bran mixed in. If the glands 
of the neck are swollen, then apply a warm poultice niade of wheat bran 
and hot vinegar, changing as often as the poultice gets dry, and be sure 
and get down all you can of flax seed tea— or slippery elm tea will answer 
the same purpose— and let this be his constant drink. Be cautious to keep 
the horse from taking cold in any way, and keep on a blanket, and thus 
you will save many a noble animal. Be cautious never to bleed your horse 
during the distemper, nor physic him any more than you will be able to 
do with your warm bran mash. 

Remedy for Bots. 

This will remove them in a few days: Take oil of turpentine 8 ounces: 
alcohol 1 quart. Mix and bottle for use. Dose, 5 ounces in the horse's feed, 
once a day for eight days, and this will effectually remove the last vestige 
of the bots. 

Cribbing 

Is a diseased stomach— a belching of wind from the stomach. 

To one pound of pulverized charcoal add 1 pound of soda ; stir well to- 
gether, and give 1 tablespoonful once a day for a few days, and breakup 
the habit as follows : 

If a simple habit, arrange the stall so as to make it impossible for him 
to crib. This you do by making the stall plain, with a simple box manger 
in front, rather low, but extending the whole width of the stall. Immedi- 
ately over the front edge of this plain box manger, hang a roller of aUout 
six or seven inches in diameter, on pivots, which must be so arranged 
that it will turn easily. This roller, extending clear across the manger, 
offers the only means within reach upon which to crib. The horse, in 
cribbing, will press his front teeth firmly upon this roller, pulling down 
and towards him, which causes the roller to turn from under his mouth, 
and he is defeated in his efforts. There is no trouble in breaking a young 
horse of this habit by this means. A very good way is to feed the horse 
from a basket hung loosely by a cord to something over head. The roller, 
properly adjusted, is however much the best means. 

Hoof Ointment. 

Take rosin four ounces ; beeswax 5 ounces ; lard 2 pounds ; melt together 
and pour into a pot ; add 3 ounces of turpentine, 2 ounces finely pulverized 
verdigris,! pound tallow. Stir all until cold. This is one of the best medicines 
for the hoof ever used. It is good for corks and bruises of the feet. 

Lost Appetite in Horses. 

Take of powdered gentian two ounces; cascarilla, (pulv.) one ounce; 
ginger, two ounces. Mix: dose, one teaspoonful in feed until a cure is 
effected. 

Grease. 

Two ounces flour sulphur; y> ounce verdigris. Mix and apply after 
washing. 

Diuretic Drops 

Are reliable for stoppage of water, foul water, or inflaiumation of the 
kidneys, in all cases. 

Take of sweet spirits of nitre 4 ounces ; balsam copaiva 2 ounces ; spirits 
of turpentine 2 ounces; oil of juniper 2 ounces ; gum camphor, pulverized 
1 ounce. Mix all together and shake well; bottle, and it is flt for use for 
man or beast, under all circumstances where a diuretic is required. 

Dose— for a horse,! ounce in half a pint of milk, once in six hours; for 
a man, one teaspoonful in a tablespoonful of milk, once in six hours. 

Be sure to shake the ingredients up well before turning out Un- use. 



BECIPES. 63 

To Prevent Horses from Jumping. 

Have a good firm strap halter, made to fit the head nicely, with a wide 
strap stitched to each side, so as to come over the eyes. Cut holes in this 
strap over each eye ; over these eye-holes put fine wire cloth, supported 
nicely by wire, so that it will not possibly touch the eyes. Before a horse 
attempts jumping over a fence, he will put his head over to calculate the 
height and distance he is obliged to jump ; but by looking through the 
wire cloth, everything is so magnified in appearance he is disconcerted in 
his efforts to do so, and is afraid to jump. 

To Recruit when Hide-Bound, 

Or otherwise out of sorts : 

Nit. potassa (or saltpetre) 4 ounces; crude antimony 1 ounce ; sulphur 3 
ounces. The nitrate of potassa and antimony should be pulverized; then 
add the sulphur and mix them well together. Dose, a tablespoonful of the 
mixture in a bran mash daily. 

Thrush. 

Cleanse the foot out well, then crowd in fine salt, and wash with beef 
brine. 

Difficulties in Foaling. 

The following information in regard to certain difllculties which some- 
times cause the death of valuable mares, as well as the manner in which 
those difficulties may be overcome, is kindly furnished for our pages by a 
gentlernan of many years' experience with the equine species. 

Frequently, just previous to the period of foaling, some accident occurs 
by which the position of the colt is changed, its head turned under, perhaps, 
or otherwise so disarranged as to prevent the further process of nature. 
At such time the efforts of the mare in trying to effect a delivery of the 
colt only render that object more difficult, by forcing everything back, the 
consequent strain closing the bones, and thus acting contrary to the plan 
of nature. To prevent this, cast the mare upon her back, tie a rope around 
each hind foot, pass the end ol the rope over a beain. or limb of a tree, 
whichever may be most favorable, and draw upon it till the hind part 
of her body is raised a foot or more from the floor, or ground. This throws 
the colt forward, opens the bones which have prevented its egress, and 
thus it can be easily handled and removed, and the mare's life saved. 

Physic Bail. 

Barbadoes aloes 1 pound; syrup buckthorn 3 ounces; cod liver oil 3 
ounces. Melt the whole, and stir till cold. In winter, add a little water. 
Make into 18 pills, and give one every four hours, or as much as will more 
the bowels. 

Wind Calls. 

Olive oil 3 ounces; nitric acid 1 ounce. Rub in as much daily or every 
second or third day as it will bear without starting the hair. 

Stifle. 

First, prepare your medicine. Take four quarts white oak bark, rasped ; 

Eut it into eight quarts water, boil to two quarts ; turn off the liquid while 
ot, and add a three-penny paper of tobacco. Now let stand until a little 
above blood heat. Now heat a flat-iron or a brick ; then proceed immedi- 
ately to put the stifle in its place. Now bathe it thoroughly with the 
decoction about five minutes, then apply your flat-iron as near as the ani- 
mal will bear, until all absorbed. Then give the animal rest for one hour, 
and if it should possibly slip out again, repeat as before, observing care 
about straining for a few days. 

Another Re3IEDY.— One ounce sugar of lead ; 1 pint alcohol. Mix, and 
apply three or four times a day until a cure is produced. 



54 BECIPES. 



Vegetable Caustic. 

Make a strong ley of hickory or oak ashes, put into an iron kettle and 
evaporate to the consistency of thin molasses; tlien remove into a sand 
bath, and continue the evaporation to the consistency of honey. Keep it 
in a ground stopped glass jar. 

This caustic is very valuable in fistula, cancers, scrofulas and indolent 
ulcers, particularly where tliere are sinuses, necrosis, or decay of the bone, 
and in all cases where there is proud flesh; and also to excite a healthy 
action of the parts. It removes fungous flesh without exciting inflamma- 
tion, and acts but little except on spongy or soft flesh. 

Anti-Spasmodic Tincture for Man or Horse. 

Oil of cajeput 1 ounce ; oil of cloves 1 ounce; oil of peppermint 1 ounce ; 
oil of anise 1 ounce; alcohol 1 quart. Mix all well together, and bottle for 
use. Dose for a horse 1 ounce every fifteen minutes, in a little whisky and 
hot water, sweetened with molasses; continue until relieved. Dose for a 
man, 1 teaspoonful. 

To Cover Heaves. 

Oil tar 1 ounce; oil amber 1 ounce. Mix, and give 15 or 20 drops in feed, 
daily. 

Harness Galls and Sores. 

Care must be taken that neither the trace nor any otlier part of the har- 
ness rubs against the sore while the horse is working. The following 
lotion should be applied to the sore twice a day, with a piece of sponge. 
The sore should not be rubbed, picked or fingered in any way : Acetate of 
lead % oz. ; tincture of opium, 3^ oz. ; glycerine, \% oz. ; water, C ozs. 

Cribbing Horses. 

The cure is very simple and easily applied. Get some pulverized cay- 
enne pepper, and si)rinkle it plentifully on the edge of the trough to which 
your horse is hitched, so that he will suck it up with the first draught of 
air. If you ride or drive out, carry some with you in a vial, and sprinkle 
some on the top of a post to which you tie the horse, and he will soou be 
cured. We have known this remedy to prove effectual. 

Sores Ulcerated with Proud Flesh. 

Take 1 oz. each white vitriol and burnt alum, pulverize them and mix 
them together, and sprinkle on the sore. Should the wound however be 
deep, a solution of \{Viy. white vitriol and one pint of rain water can be 
used with a syringe. After the proud flesh is destroyed use liniment com- 
posed of '4oz. each balsam of life and laudanum; mix in a bottle and 
shake welfbefore using. 

Gravel. 

Give two-thirds of a tablespoonful of saltpetre in a little salt, for three 
consecutive days; or take a pint of watermelon seed and boil in two 
tjuarts of water, till reduced to nearly one-half, and drench two morn- 
ings in succession. Your horse will soon be relieved. 

To make a White Foot, or a Star in a Horse's Forehead. 

Take pickled mackerel and confine it on, in any shape you please, three 
or four days repeating, and it will produce a white foot, or a white spot. 
Rub the white saddle spots on a horses back a few times daily in the 
spring of the year, before the coat is slied, with bacon grease, and it will 
restore the natural color. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



GEORGE L. 002 863 2150 

Attorney at La\v, 



i^ 



J^lS^JD 



REAL ESTATE AGENT, 

311 Main Street, 
PEOI^I^, - - ILLIIVOIS. 



Special attention given to perfecting titles, and to the 

recovering of property for heirs and others, 

through Illinois, Missouri and Texas. 

100,000 ACRES OF WESTERN LAND 

For Sale or Exchange. 
\ IMPORTANT TO STOCK RAISERS. 



A Book on Jtoiv to raise valuable Stock of all kinds, and 
of either sex you choose. 

ETeryloily interested in STOCK EAISINIi slonlii Have it. 

Sent by mail to any address, securely wrapped, for$l.oO. 
Address, 

G. M. STANCHFIELD, 

Peoria, Illinois. 



